# Kedarnath Temple

By [nahsee.eth](https://paragraph.com/@nahsee) · 2022-11-08

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([Sanskrit](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanskrit): केदारनाथ मंदिर, [IAST](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/IAST): _Kēdāranātha Mandira_, lit. 'temple of the God of the field') is a [Hindu temple](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu_temple) roughly 1200 years old dedicated to [Shiva](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva). The temple is located on the Garhwal [Himalayan range](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_range) near the [Mandakini river](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mandakini_river), in the state of [Uttarakhand](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uttarakhand), [India](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/India). Due to [extreme weather](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extreme_weather) conditions, the temple is open to the general public only between the months of April ([Akshaya Tritiya](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akshaya_Tritiya)) and November ([Kartik Purnima](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kartik_Purnima), the autumn full moon). During the winters, the _vigraha_ (deity) of the temple is carried down to [Ukhimath](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ukhimath) to be worshipped for the next six months. Kedarnath is seen as a homogenous form of [Shiva](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiva), the 'Lord of Kedarkhand', the historical name of the region.

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*Originally published on [nahsee.eth](https://paragraph.com/@nahsee/kedarnath-temple)*